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Daily industrial news and top headlines for plant and maintenance managers

Stanley Proto (Conyers, GA) has expanded its lineup of Dial Electronic Wrenches with seven new SKU’s, bringing the total to nine sizes to choose from. The wrenches have torque ranges from 7.5 in-lbs. to 2000 ft-lbs., so there is a solution regardless of the maintenance issue.

NEW ORLEANS (AP) — U.S. Sen. David Vitter has called for federal officials to do a more thorough review of the deaths of several people who lived in homes that contained smelly, possibly toxic Chinese drywall.
Federal officials at the Consumer Product Safety Commission said they have investigated and found no link between the drywall and the deaths of eight people.

FALLON, Nev. (AP) — Commercial Metals Co. is closing its Fallon plant, and scores of employees will lose their jobs.
Officials for the Irving, Texas-based company are blaming the sluggish economy for the closure set for April 29. But they declined to release the number of affected employees.

A survivor of a deadly explosion and fire at a southeastern New Mexico oil refinery has filed a lawsuit, saying the cause was a welding accident and that the plant operator failed to follow safety procedures.
Juan Carlos Hermosillo, also known as Elias Aleman, remained hospitalized Thursday with injuries from Tuesday's explosion at Navajo Refinery in Artesia, N.

EAST HARTFORD, Conn. (AP) — Pratt & Whitney asked a federal appeals court Thursday to act quickly on the jet engine maker's request to overturn a judge's ruling that blocks the company from moving 1,000 jobs out of Connecticut.
In a request to the 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, Pratt & Whitney said a decision is needed soon to avoid financial harm because the company plans to shut two Connecticut plants immediately after its union contract expires in December.

TOYOTA, Japan (AP) — Toyota President Akio Toyoda urged thousands of his employees Friday to work toward a new start and win back customer trust following safety lapses that have battered the world's biggest carmaker.
"Let's go with high spirits, have fun and be confident while staying humble," Toyoda, choking up and wearing a gray workman's jacket, told 2,000 workers packed into the company's headquarters.

CHEYENNE, Wyo. (AP) — A bill that would have increased employer penalties for workplace safety violations has died in the Wyoming State Senate.
House Bill 93 had come out of a worker safety task force Gov. Dave Freudenthal appointed last year to address the state's chronically high worker fatality rate, particularly in the energy industry.

In early 2010, Rollon added more than twenty years of linear motion experience to its roster by bringing Rick Wood on board as managing director. In the latest PD&D Fireside Chat, Wood taps into those 20 years to discuss bearing jokes, one-piece flow, silly ways to make money and the further weakening of the dollar — among other things.

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MILWAUKEE (AP) — There was no reason to think the storage tank was unsafe. All it contained was recycled water and organic waste.
So when a damaged part needed repair, three workers approached the top of the 80-foot-tall tank on a catwalk and one worker began welding.
Moments later an explosion tore through the massive tank.

The HygroLog NL-HT data logger from Rotronic USA (Hauppauge, NY) uses HygroClip2 sensors and the AirChip3000 to record many different physical parameters while meeting all requirements for FDA, CFR Part 11, and GAMP compliance. The HydroLog is ideal for applications in which long-term recording of humidity and temperature is critical, according to the company, such as pharmaceutical, food, and electronics manufacturers.

The HEPC Series of emergency power controls from High-Lites (Wallingford, CT) adapt locally switched lighting fixtures for operation during power interruptions, with a design that bypasses the local switch. HEPC power controls also save energy by eliminate the need for night-light circuits.

Siemens Industry, Inc. (Atlanta, GA) announces a new service for its line of 1FK7 servomotors, which allows customers to place an order for any Siemens customizable servomotor and have it drop-shipped in three weeks. A diverse range of options are available, creating more than 100,000 possible configurations, according to the company, including all compact (CT) and high-dynamic (HD) servomotors.

Hy-Lok USA (Mobile, AL) now offers leak-free double ferrule compression tube fittings, which are specifically designed for interchangeability with other major manufacturers. The Hy-Lok fittings are ideal for engine or turbine manufacturers. The tube fittings are also gaugeable, which is important in maintaining maximum safety during the installation of compression tube fittings.

SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico (AP) — The U.S. Food and Drug Administration is warning consumers in Puerto Rico that two locally produced hand sanitizers contain high levels of bacteria.
The agency says "Bee-Shield Hand Sanitizer" with Aloe Vera and "MD Quality Hand Sanitizer" are distributed only in the U.

ERIE, Pa. (AP) — The union representing about 4,000 workers at the GE Transportation plant near Erie plan to discuss the company's plans to make the facility tobacco-free by next year.
General Electric Co. experimented in 2007 by offering $750 to workers who quit smoking and earlier this year discounted its health insurance premiums for workers who don't smoke.

WASHINGTON (AP) — When 3-year-old Brandyn Coppedge became entangled on a window blind cord, it took less than a minute for the toddler to strangle. His father says the safety device designed to prevent such a tragedy had broken, but the window blind was never recalled.
"They need to make the product safer," said Navy Chief Petty Officer Phillip Coppedge, who lives in Norfolk, Va.

SAN JOSE, Calif. (AP) — A new report says it will cost California taxpayers $2.3 billion to replace jobs lost from the closure of a factory that makes Toyota cars and trucks.
The report released Wednesday also says the layoffs that result from closing Fremont-based New United Motor Manufacturing Inc.

RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — ConAgra Foods Inc. said Wednesday it will close a Slim Jim production facility in North Carolina that was damaged during a deadly explosion last year, cutting hundreds of jobs in North Carolina while adding capacity in Ohio.
The Omaha, Neb.-based food manufacturer said the Garner site will close in late 2011 and production will transition to a facility in Troy, Ohio.

Every once in a blue moon, someone comes up with a machine that’s utterly… worthless. Well, worthless but cool. A couple of guys hooked a hopper filled with popcorn to an Archimedes’s screw that only turns when someone uses the #popcorn hashtag on our favorite social media website, Twitter.

Mike Rowe of Dirty Jobs fame meets up with some oyster shuckers to learn the ins-and-outs of a dirty business. If you thought your job was tough, just think about shelling out thousands of oysters a day for $0.50 a pound.
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